Books Read: 3

I have finished another book: Hungry: A Mother and Daughter Fight Anorexia by Sheila and Lisa Himmel. This book documents the struggles and pain that happens to an individual with an eating disorder and how that affects the family. This book is particularly original because the mother is a food critic for the San Jose Mercury News and food is a large influence on the family. It discusses the daughter's development from anorexia in high school and development of bulimia in college. It goes back and forth between the daughter's experience and the mother's (they start the paragraph with their names so you know when it switches). It gives a hopefully but realistic message at the end of the book about recovering and ways to help someone who has an eating disorder.

Overall, I really enjoyed this book. I found it to be honest and straight forward about the realities and horrors of having an eating disorder-not just for the individual but the family as well. I found it useful as a book for people who are studying psychology, and are thinking of working with eating disorders. They talk a lot about psychologists and psychiatrists who were not helpful and how they did not make her (the daughter) feel comfortable and be non-judgmental of her. However, if the therapist and the client do not click, then the client probably won't make any progress. As a person hoping to become a therapist and possible work with eating disorders I found it an important reminder of these essentials to therapy. On another note, my other favorite part of the book was the fact that it was set in the Bay Area-in a town right next to mine: Palo Alto. I found I could relate to the story more since I as able to recognize places and understand the cultural references.

I would recommend this book either for people who have dealt with (or are dealing with) eating disorders, psychologists who are thinking of working with eating disorders, or those who know someone who has an eating disorder. It does not sugar coat the experience and shows the brutal truth of eating disorders. It is well written and definitely and interesting and enjoyable read. My next book is Daughter of York by Anne Easter Smith.